Fall of the Clans
by Christmas Spirit of the Brook
Summary: What would happen if the Dark Forest won? They would enslave the Clans, that's what. With the Three in hiding and Firestar dead, what will happen to them? WARNING: EXTREMELY INTENSE AND SAD! Rated T because it's just Warriors. I DO NOT OWN THE COVER IMAGE! OR WARRIORS!
1. The Beginning and A New Friend

**Adopted from: Eradrin Skyleaf**

Tigerstar raised his claw over Firestar's chest and struck the life out of him. The dark tabby laughed maliciously, his amber eyes blazing with an insane light. He hissed at the Clan cats who were staring at the lifeless body of the ThunderClan leader. "Well, you idiots," he growled. "The Dark Forest has won! Victory is ours!" He bellowed in triumph and his gaze glittered dangerously, as if threatening anyone to challenge him.

***Dovewing's POV***

Dovewing couldn't believe it. All the Three's work and plans of defeating the Dark Forest had gone to waste. An ominous thought entered her head: _What will happen now that we've been defeated? Will they keep us as slaves? Or will they torture us in our own territories until we're gone?_

She shuddered as she looked at the former ShadowClan leader's scars. He had been through so much more than she had and for a moment, Dovewing almost felt sorry for Tigerstar. But she shook her head mentally. She should not be sorry for an enemy.

She shifted uncomfortably and looked at the Dark Forest warriors who were pouring in on either side to trap the Clan cats. But apparently, a RiverClan queen had a different idea. She thrust the warriors away violently with her shoulder, even though they were made of mist. They glanced at each other and they stole her two kits in a flash.

Dovewing's eyes widened in shock as the queen stood there, wailing as a different warrior came up to her and forced her to the ground. They led her away and she shuddered to think about where they were bringing her.

She remembered fighting in the battle and seeing a stump. It wasn't just any stump; it was burnt and a very sharp Twoleg object had been brought up on a vine to hang just over the top. Dovewing had quickly learned that the vines that encircled the trunk would immediately wrap around whoever stumbled upon them and slowly crush them until the unfortunate cat died.

If the cat didn't die of the vines, the Twoleg object would be brought down upon them and they would bleed to death. Dovewing thought it was a simply horrible task and to think that the Dark Forest warriors were murdering a Clan cat for their pleasure made her insides roil.

"Get to work, slaves!" Tigerstar roared, looking down at the Clan cats and grinning evilly. She simply stood there in shock and grief and thought about how she had been defeated by a dead cat.

"Move it, chick," a low, gravelly voice snarled from behind Dovewing. She turned around with a start to see a jet black tom with icy blue eyes. He was looking at the ground, as if he was ashamed of himself.

"Did you just call me….. 'chick'?" Dovewing hissed indignantly. "For your information, my name is Dovewing." The tom didn't react. He just pushed her along with his head. The gray ThunderClan warrior lashed her tail in frustration and stomped forward, her head low, her eyes sullen with rage.

After a few moments, the silence became unbearable, so Dovewing began to try to make a conversation. "So," she meowed awkwardly. "What happened to that queen and her kits back there?"

The black tom lifted his head, sending a shiver up her spine as she gazed into those cold, empty eyes. "Oh, her," he growled. He then shrugged. "She has a scheduled death that all cats will have to watch. I don't enjoy them too much, but it has to be done. And her kits will be cared for so they will make valuable recruits in slavery." She thought she saw him wince at the end of the sentence, as if he hated the word "slavery".

Dovewing nodded, her eyes filling with tears as she thought about those precious kits being raised to slave around in their mother's territory. "What's your name?" she asked quietly, a lump in her throat beginning to form.

"Shadowflight," he murmured, diverting his eyes away from Dovewing's. "I'm a loner." She was surprised. "So, you mean you're alive?" she asked.

But Shadowflight didn't respond. He just moved on to another cat in the long line of trudging Clan cats heading toward their new camp and miserable life.

***Silverkit's POV***

The first thing Silverkit noticed in the morning was that her mother was gone. She thought she was in the nursery and she curled up in a tighter ball of fur when she felt her mother's nose nudge her.

But her mother didn't seem to care that she was trying to sleep. Eventually, Silverkit felt claws on her back, pressing her harder and harder. She yelped in shock. Her mother wouldn't try to kill her.

Silverkit opened her innocent blue eyes. She scrambled back in fear when she saw a pointed dog-like face looming in front of her. "Who are you?" she squeaked, trying to sound brave.

"Coyoteclaw is the name," the dog sneered, his eyes cold and intelligent. He was gray with a white muzzle and chest. He seemed to radiate power, anger, and vengeance.

"Oh, so you're a warrior?" Silverkit queried curiously. Maybe this dog wasn't so bad after all.

But he laughed a vicious laugh that seemed to cut through the air like claws. "Nope, Tigerstar just named me Coyoteclaw cause' he thought I was a wild dog. But no, I'm the spirit of a very evil being named Onyx. I named myself that cause' I thought I was as hard as stone. No, my spirit broke a long time ago and I suffered from insanity for the rest of my life. Me and my friend, Cutthroat decided to see what the Clan cats were like. They proved to be pretty stupid, like your mother."

Silverkit frowned. "My mama isn't stupid!" she protested. "She's very brave and you should know that!"

In a blur of gray fur, Coyoteclaw lunged forward and pressed his stubby claws up to the little she-kit's throat. "You better watch it, princess," he growled through clenched teeth, his voice low. "If you protest against HIS orders, you're gonna be dead in a heartbeat."

"Who is he?" Silverkit asked, confused at the dog spirit's actions. "Why are you acting this way? You should be humble and loyal, like in Mama's stories."

Coyoteclaw sighed then stared into Silverkit's blue eyes with a serious look combined with grief and fear. "Listen, kit," he whispered. "The truth is..." He paused, as if he was having trouble talking. "Your mother is gonna be killed in an hour. If you wildcats don't know what an hour is, I'll tell you it's a short period of time."

The young RiverClan kit widened her eyes in disbelief. "No," she murmured, her voice trembling. "No, this can't be happening. Mama can't be dead! No, NO!"

Coyoteclaw gazed at Silverkit with sincere sadness in his yellow eyes and for once, he looked noble and dignified, like a wolf pack leader. "I know this is hard, young one," he said comfortingly. "Believe me; I know this because my own mother died when I was a puppy. That's what made me believe in revenge and rage. But it did nothing to suppress my grief cooped up inside. That's why I truly went insane, trying to figure out how I could get rid of the sadness. Tigerstar's forcing me to do his dirty work for him. I'm sorry, kid. I have to remain loyal to my boss."

Silverkit turned around, her eyes stinging with tears. "Just show me where Emberkit is," she hissed, more at the sky than Coyoteclaw.

"Kid, I can't find your brother or your mother, whoever you're talking about. The thing is, I'm stuck in here with you," he said. The kit turned around, her eyes wide with panic.

"We can't let them do this to you, Coyoteclaw," she shrieked. "We can't let them do this to Mama! We can't let them do this to me and Emberkit! **_WE NEED TO STOP THIS!"_**

An hour passed and Silverkit sobbed the whole time. Finally, she realized she needed to rest before she saw her mother's death. But it was too late. A massive rusty red wolf padded into the clearing, his pelt crossed many times over with scars. He bellowed, "Silverkit, Coyoteclaw, it is time for the main event!"

The RiverClan kit stood up and padded over to the wolf, her head held high and her eyes bright with more tears to come. Coyoteclaw walked behind her and behind him was the guard wolf. "That's Cutthroat," he whispered in Silverkit's ear. "He's always been the more proud and bossy one of our duo."

"I heard that, Coyoteclaw," Cutthroat rumbled, his voice tense and angry. Coyoteclaw boldly turned around and faced the other wolf. "Yes, I'm sure you did because you have bionic hearing," he growled sarcastically then set off without another word.

They passed through giant rusty iron bars and the gates swung closed behind them. Silverkit took a deep breath and traveled on with her new friend and ally at her side.

**A/N: Whoa, pretty tense, right? Just wait for the next chapter. It's gonna be even more awesome. Sorry about the choppy start. I just couldn't find a good place to begin at. And no, I haven't read The Last Hope, so don't go all over the place, spoiling the story. All I know is that two cats are supposed to die at the end, okay? Got that resolved. Oh, and by the way, I don't own Warriors. If I did, the plot would probably be gods-awful and things would be a whole lot more dramatic. Yes, Silverkit is named after Silverstream. By the way, there's going to be an OC queen in RiverClan from now on. You'll have to read the next chapter to find out who the OC's name is! Now, run along, little children. Your story time is over. Review, please! It means so much to me! BYE!**


	2. Safe Kits and A Tragedy

**A/N: HI! Spirit of the Brook here with the 2****nd**** chapter of The Fall of the Clans! Gods, the first chapter was intense. But now, we are faced with more intensity, cliff hangers and dramatic twists with romance and action and death and grief and….. *sigh* I need to calm down. Okay, time for the next chapter! OMO (Oh my Olympians), I can't believe it's already past Christmas!**

***Dovewing's POV***

Dovewing sensed the camp before she even got there. Her special senses picked up the sound of wailing and screeching. These were the sounds of torture and she guessed that this would be where the camp was.

She began steering herself in that direction, but a large blue gray tom stopped her. His nostrils flared and his eyes flashed dangerously, showing that he had already dealt with some tough cats earlier and he was not one to be messed with now.

Dovewing fell back into line, casually strolling along, but eyeing where the wails came from. "What're you looking at?" the tom grunted. "Something caught your eye?"

She shook her head. "It's nothing," she muttered. "Aw, c'mon. I know somethin' got yer attention, miss!" He prodded her in the shoulder harshly. Dovewing whipped around, her blue eyes blazing in indignant rage.

"Would you stop it, you hulking idiot?" she hissed, pushing through the line of cats. She didn't care that the Dark Forest warriors were chasing after her. She was going into hiding. She was never coming back to this horrible camp for slaves.

Dovewing quickly lost the other warriors and plunged through ThunderClan's thick undergrowth and trees. She hooked her claws in an oak's bark and shot up the tree like a squirrel.

She got a good look at the surrounding area and she quickly spotted the ThunderClan camp. Smiling, she began to jump from branch to branch, steadying herself until she finally reached the top of the hollow.

She let out a breath of relief and jumped down. Dovewing peered into the camp and immediately, she knew that someone had been using the camp as a place to hide. Herbs were scattered everywhere around Jayfeather's den and she could see slight movements in the darkness of the cave.

She snuck down through the camp entrance and bounded silently across the bottom of the hollow. She reached the medicine cat den and she cautiously took a step in. A flash of golden fur hit her and tackled her to the ground.

Dovewing gasped with pain as her attacker began to dig her claws into her stomach. Suddenly, they stopped and she opened her eyes to be faced with a familiar golden tabby face.

"Lionblaze!" she meowed in delight. But her happiness dimmed when she saw the serious look on her former mentor's face. "What is it?" she asked, concerned for the tom.

"Cinderheart," he muttered. Dovewing's jaw dropped. "You brought her?" she hissed. Lionblaze nodded and she saw the tears gathering at the edges of his amber eyes.

"She just kitted," he replied, looking up with an expression as hard as steel. "Follow me." Dovewing sighed and followed the older warrior until they were in the shelter of the cave.

"Oh, hey, Dovewing," Jayfeather, who seemed to appear out of nowhere greeted the gray she-cat. "I'm assuming you've heard the news?"

"Yes," she replied, dipping her head even though he was blind. "Where is she?" Jayfeather stared down blankly at his paws in guilt. He took a deep breath as if to steady himself. "She's dead. She died when the third kit was born."

"No, she couldn't have died," she breathed, shaking her head in disbelief. "She was so young and strong. You can't be serious….right?" The word "right" came out as a weak squeak.

Jayfeather didn't respond, but Dovewing immediately knew that he was being serious. She took a moment to grieve for the loss of Cinderheart. Then she held her head up high, tears streaming down her cheeks and boldly declared, "I'll take care of them."

"Who?" Lionblaze asked flatly, his head drooping in pain and grief and his eyes red from crying. "There's nobody left."

"The kits are still alive, though, am I correct?" she asked, desperately hoping that she was right. Jayfeather hesitated then nodded, his blind blue eyes admitting defeat which Dovewing was pretty sure was a mystery feeling to him.

"Then where are they?" she asked. He motioned his tail to a small crevice in the wall that she had not noticed before. She padded over to the crevice and peered inside. There were three mewling kits; one was a tortoiseshell like Cinderheart's mother, Sorreltail and another was gray like its mother. But the last one was a bright golden tabby, like Lionblaze.

"What were you going to name them, Lionblaze?" Dovewing asked her former mentor. The tom walked over and looked at his three kits. "I was going to name this one, Mistkit," Lionblaze meowed, gesturing to the gray she-kit. "Cinderheart said she would name the second one, but now that she's not here-"he winced-"I guess I'll have to name it."

"So," Dovewing replied awkwardly. "Which one was born second?" Lionblaze dipped his head to the tortoiseshell that was also a she-kit. "How about Fallenkit, since her mother fell to StarClan's will?" he asked, yet again wincing at his mate's death.

She nodded. "Fallenkit is a beautiful name," she assured the new father. "What about the golden tabby?"

Lionblaze thought for a moment then looked Dovewing straight in the eye. "I think you should name him," he meowed warmly. She was taken aback by the request.

"Me?" she stuttered. He nodded and smiled, his amber eyes glowing with amusement. "Uh, okay," the young warrior responded and she looked upon the golden tom-kit. He looked so much like his father, except he had several tiny black spots under his closed eyes. Dovewing nodded confidently. It would be a perfect name, considering both he and his father resembled noble, proud ancient cats….

"I say his name should be Leopardkit," she announced, smiling at the little tom-kit mewling at his new name. "Mistkit, Fallenkit, and Leopardkit," Lionblaze whispered, grinning and picking up his only son by the scruff of his neck.

Then alarm flashed in his eyes. "Do you have any milk for them?" he asked, his voice muffled by Leopardkit's fur. Dovewing glanced around awkwardly. "Uh…. Yeah," she said in a small voice, glancing at Jayfeather. "I figured out that I was expecting Bumblestripe's kits a few days ago."

"Then you can suckle my kits, right?" he asked. "You can be their adoptive mother?" Dovewing nodded, understanding completely Lionblaze's pain and worry.

The golden tabby warrior laid down all three kits at her belly and she nuzzled each one comfortingly. They immediately started suckling and Dovewing smiled down upon them.

_Mistkit, Fallenkit, Leopardkit, _she thought. _Raised in a safe environment._

***Silverkit's POV***

The trip through the forest was not safe at all. When the Dark Forest won, it seemed to affect the forest around her. All the trees had turned black and pieces of bark fluttered off like flakes of ash when Silverkit bumped into one of them.

She peered nervously over her tiny shoulder to see Cutthroat. He was padding along with a smug, determined look on his face. Immediately, Silverkit knew that he was not one to be trusted. The very pale gray she-kit shuddered and looked ahead. The trees seemed to be closing in on the dusty, soot colored path and she could almost feel eyes in them boring into her pelt.

Finally, they reached a clearing with a large gray tree stump in the middle. Vines curved around it and their leaves trembled and made a strange whispering sound like they were afraid of what they possessed. At the far end of the clearing was her mother, Whitefoot, queen of RiverClan.

Her snowy fur was riddled with pale gray stripes and she had deep midnight blue eyes, which were so dark they almost looked black. They glistened with tears and when she finally spotted Silverkit, she began to struggle against her captors, hissing and wailing in agony.

Silverkit's heart ached for her mother and she forced herself to look at the ground for fear that she might start crying. She looked off to the sidelines. Clan cats were being herded into a small corral, their pelts giving off an unbearable stench.

She gulped. She could tell that they had been abused for the past hour. Was this truly her future? Silverkit had planned to grow up as an apprentice then a warrior. She would've found a loving mate and had kits together. But now, her dreams were in the process of being shattered to bits. Through the darkness, though she believed there was hope.

Silverkit glanced over at the opposite side of the corral of warriors. A giant metallic red Twoleg machine was standing at the edge of the woods. Inside was Tigerstar, his amber eyes glowing with an evil light.

She switched her gaze over to Coyoteclaw who was staring at the stump with a noble, yet pained look on his face. She could tell what she had said to him had changed him and she could sense the longing in him to stop Tigerstar and his minions and save the Clans.

"Greetings, all cats!" Tigerstar boomed his voice amplified over another Twoleg object. "You have been brutally ushered into The Corral, where you shall watch a criminal be murdered. This cat, Whitefoot of RiverClan opposed my rule to protect her precious kits." He sneered. "This is for all cats who wish to disobey me so that they may know that they will be punished severely for their actions. Be warned… Let the trial begin!"

A massive coal black wolf came out from the shadows around the Twoleg machine, its red eyes gleaming with malice. Its paws were bigger than Coyoteclaw and Silverkit combined. It snarled and snapped at every living thing in and around the clearing. He walked up to Whitefoot and Silverkit's heart nearly stopped when her mother glared at the beast and snapped right back.

The wolf gave a cold grin with pointy pure white teeth stained red at the tips. It suddenly bent down and closed its slavering jaws around Whitefoot's scruff. She shrieked in pain and Silverkit gave a little gasp of horror. It swung its head around to point directly at the stump. Then, without another moment's hesitation, tossed her mother straight into the vines.

Silverkit's eyes widened in fear as the vines began to curl around Whitefoot's body, squeezing her tighter and tighter. The wolf walked up with a spiteful smile on its muzzle. Finally, it spoke. Its voice was deep and hollow and resonated through the entire clearing. "Do you accept that Tigerstar is your ruler and you shall serve him forever and ever?"

_Don't agree, Mother, _Silverkit pleaded. _They'll kill you, anyways. _"Never!" Whitefoot boldly screeched. The wolf let out a low, snake-like hiss and glared at her. _"FINISH HER!"_ Tigerstar roared.

It was at this moment that time seemed to slow down. Silverkit sped through her short life; all her memories of greeting her father in the RiverClan camp, the night her father went out on a patrol and never came back, her mother telling her that he had been murdered by a Dark Forest warrior, the day she figured out the Clans were at war with the Dark Forest, sticking with her brother as they were surrounded by Dark Forest warriors, their mother being captured, meeting Coyoteclaw, and now she saw Whitefoot being slain on a tree stump.

With one last scream, her mother was gone.


	3. Dangerous Questions and New Forms

**A/N: *gasp* That last chapter was so dramatic. I feel so sorry for Silverkit. But anyways, that got really intense, didn't it? What with all her flash backs and all that stuff, it was just so sad…. But we get to see her adorable "little" brother, Emberkit in this chapter. But first (lemme take a selfie!) let's get to Dovewing's story. Mistkit, Fallenkit, and Leopardkit are so cute! Not as cute as Emberkit…. You decide in the reviews! Let's get on with the story.**

Dovewing had never known that young kits could ask extremely dangerous questions. Leopardkit had already opened his eyes to the world and was exploring Jayfeather's den. She snorted in amusement as the little tom bumped into the medicine cat's leg accidentally and started to cower under his icy blue gaze.

"Don't worry, dear!" Dovewing called. "It's just Jayfeather!" Jayfeather turned around with a scowl on his face, which told her he was about to make a very sarcastic comment. "_Just _Jayfeather?!" he exclaimed dramatically. "I'm _just _Jayfeather, the one that helps supply your milk to feed the kits, the one who would heal you if you were hurt in battle, the one who is placed with the responsibility of keeping ThunderClan safe in times of combat, the one…."

His words trailed off into silence as he realized he had said too much. "What is ThunderClan?" he asked his amber eyes sweet and innocent. _Think up a good answer, _she thought and Jayfeather nodded affirmatively, reading her thoughts.

"Well," he meowed and Dovewing could tell he was struggling. "ThunderClan was our Clan when we were younger, yes younger and we lived with other cats. But some other bad cats chased us out." Dovewing sighed, hoping Leopardkit would stop at that, but alas, he was still curious.

"Why would they chase you out?" he asked, his little head cocked to the side. "You and Auntie Dovewing aren't bad. You're good, noble cats." Dovewing's heart was touched by his compliment, but still a dark thought intruded her mind. _If only he knew that we had run away like cowards from all the pain and suffering that the Clans have to go through this very moment….._

She shook her head to clear herself of this concept and returned to the present. Leopardkit was hopping gleefully over to the nest in which lay Dovewing, Fallenkit, and Mistkit. "Come on!" he squealed, bouncing up and down enthusiastically. "What?" Fallenkit groaned, her small tortoiseshell body shifting around in the moss. Mistkit didn't say anything.

"Let's play!" he replied. Fallenkit reluctantly picked herself up and stretched long and hard. She yawned then padded over to her brother. She looked over her shoulder and called, "Come on, Mistkit! You heard 'im, let's play!"

But the little grey kit still didn't move, nose tucked under her paws. Dovewing became worried and reached out a paw to touch her. She was in a state of panic now. "Jayfeather?" she called weakly. "Could you come here?"

Suddenly, just as the words came out of her mouth, Mistkit shot up out of the nest and raced out of the den. "Fooled ya!" she yowled. Her siblings snickered and followed her. Dovewing stood up and for the first time, she felt pure deep rage run through her veins, making her blood ice cold. Her eye twitched and her legs began to tremble.

Then suddenly, she collapsed and all hell broke loose.

***Silverkit's POV***

Silverkit was broken, on a different planet than her brother, Emberkit. She refused to listen to anything anyone said. She was lost and all her dreams were crushed by one huge foot. She writhed in her sleep and when she dreamed, she was always in the Cavern.

The Cavern was a place that she dreaded. The stone ceiling was so high up above her that the peak of the roof was shrouded in shadows. She sat on a reddish-colored stone pedestal, but she couldn't move anywhere. When she peered over the edge, she saw blood red water lapping at the stone, threatening to rise up further. When she looked even closer, she saw unnaturally huge dark grey fish with jaws the size of the wolf that had killed Whitefoot swimming in the scarlet liquid. They moved through it slowly, as if they really were stuck in a blood lake.

Silverkit never had a comforting dream now and it was all because of Tigerstar. Hatred flared deep in her chest, attempting to escape, but her logic stopped it, caused it to forget about itself then drift away back to where it came from. When she woke up, it felt like long, sharp claws were embedded in her heart, causing her to stumble with every step. This particular morning, the pain was even worse and she wailed for hours. Emberkit tried to comfort Silverkit, but to no avail.

Day after day passed and it remained in her. But now, the final straw was pulled. "Let all cats old enough to murder gather beside the Rotting Log!" Silverkit heard the deep voice of Tigerstar from outside the den, but she didn't move. A dark grey-and-silver tabby slid into the den, his eyes narrowed in a permanent glare. "Come," he hissed, pushing the she-kit, but she refused to move.

"Come on, move it, little princess before I make you!" the tabby snarled. "No," Silverkit whispered, quietly but with determination. "No, I will not be a new slave for you." She turned around, her blue eyes snapping with hatred, turning from summer sky to ice, back and forth in a hypnotizing pattern. "You must obey me now or risk dying under my claws." She spoke several octaves lower than her normal voice. Her pale grey fur was turning darker, her face and ears becoming more pointed. Her tail was bushing out and she waved it around threateningly.

The tom was getting scared now, cowering under the now bigger form of Silverkit. "Uh, yes, Your Highness," he mewed uneasily. "Do you want to tell Tigerstar about your….new form?" He began kneading his paws nervously into the ground. "No!" Silverkit snarled, her eyes staying a pale ice blue now. "You will not report me to that cowardly scoundrel!"

Y-y-yes," he stuttered then darted out of the den. Silverkit began to shrink now and lose her unusual features. She trotted over brightly to Emberkit, who was staring at her with wide, shocked eyes. "What?" she asked. "Y-y-you were just a-a-"he began, still paralyzed in fear. "You were a….wolf."

**A/N: Well, that was a strange, supernatural chapter. What the heck happened to Dovewing that made all Hades break loose? And how the heck is Silverkit a wolf and a cat at the same time? No one shall ever know until the fourth chapter… Read and review and I will begin writing that fourth chapter, to make sure all your dreams come true. Nah, I can't guarantee that. Too pricey. But, anyways hope you enjoyed and have a happy late Valentine's Day!**


	4. Haunting Nightmares and Keeping Safe

**Hey, guys, Brookunichi here with the long-awaited fourth chapter of Fall of the Clans! It's been forever since I have last worked on this story but I hope to get back into the groove of working on it! If you do not remember the chapters before, you may go visit them now! Are you gone now? Okey, I bet you're back by now for the fourth chapter and you will be ready for the fab Chapter 4! Enjoy the chapter and my response to your reviews!**

**Shiverdream of WindClan: Glad you enjoy it, Red! Well, technically dogs aren't one of her greatest enemies because of Coyoteclaw and fab things!**

**TheDogeMaster Types: I'm happy you like it! Stay tuned for fabulousness!**

* * *

Dovewing's dreams were haunted and unreal. Huge blood red cats leapt past her, hissing in unearthly voices. Small winged creatures rode on them, sinking their fangs into the back of the cats' necks. One cat, hugest of them all stopped and turned around, only to choke and fall to the ground. A thick stream of blood poured out slowly like sludge from the wound on the back of his neck.

The winged creatures were on a feeding frenzy, killing the red cats left and right. They floundered in the red liquid inching its way toward Dovewing. She jumped back in fright but found that the blood was approaching from all sides. "_No one can save you now, Dove's Wing,_" a voice sneered out of the shadows. "_Your powers are lost to my forces. You will obey me, or risk dying._"

"Are-are you the Dark Forest?" Dovewing asked nervously. The voice ripped out from the darkness so loudly it made her head ache. All too late, she realized it was laughing because a huge blood-sucking creature had latched itself onto her head. "_No, dove of the prophecy,_" it growled maliciously. "_I am the disembodied spirit of Terror itself._" With that, her hellish nightmare vanished into black space.

Dovewing found herself next in a moonlit hollow. Soft, damp grass squished under her grey paws. She glanced around nervously, expecting for one of the winged creatures to spring out at her or the voice to speak. When nothing happened, she slowly sat down. "You know, there's no reason to be afraid."

The grey warrior jumped up in fear and swung around, claws unsheathed and ready to fight for her life. Then she saw a cat she hadn't expected to see in a million seasons: Spottedleaf. The sleek-furred dark tortoiseshell sat behind her, her tail wrapped neatly over her paws. She cocked her head to one side curiously. "Calm down," she mewed softly. "It's just me, Spottedleaf. StarClan sent me to instruct you because our connection with the Clan cats has been growing dim ever since the Dark Forest took over."

Dovewing nodded then asked hoarsely, "What do you mean by instructing me?" The former medicine cat straightened suddenly, her tail and back fur bristling wildly. "_There is a prophecy,_" she spoke in a deep, hollow voice. "_Darkness will capture the soul of the Clans except for two young kits, escaped from dark warriors and risked being dashed to bits. The Three of great power will be rivaled by silver, and the brother who has the ability to pilfer._"

Dovewing stared at Spottedleaf in confusion. "What-"But Spottedleaf flicked her tail over the young warrior's mouth. "Do not speak," she meowed in an urgent, yet concerned tone. "He is always listening." Her dark amber eyes darted around the clearing, as if expecting whoever "he" was to meet them. She shuddered.

"Go," Spottedleaf directed her. "Try to find out the meaning of the prophecy. Stay safe. And-"her eyes glowed warmly- "always keep hope in your heart." Then the dream grew fuzzy and black and faint voices caught her attention. "What?" Dovewing murmured, only to find that her voice was detached from her throat.

Then a loud burst of sound alerted her and searing sunlight struck her eyes. She crumpled in pain and let out a low whimper. Jayfeather's stern grey tabby face was looming over her, blue eyes cold and his expression unreadable. "What happened?" she managed to croak.

Jayfeather seemed to notice her finally. "Ah, you're awake," he mewed, but with no happiness. "To answer your question, we have no idea what happened to you. But we do know you've been unconscious for five days."

***Silverkit's POV*  
** Incredible things occurred in the five days after the wolf incident. Silverkit figured out that she could turn into other animals and when a Dark Forest warrior had tried to chase her out of their den, she turned into a wolf and he immediately bended under her rule. It seemed she was stronger and more powerful in her wolf form, so she generally stayed like that, though she shifted into a pup's body around Emberkit.

On a sunny afternoon, another shocking event happened. Tigerstar made her and Emberkit apprentices, under the names of Silverpaw and Emberpaw. They were not true apprentices, as the dark warriors believed, but it was enough for Silverpaw. She was content to bend the rules and stay as a wolf. Still, Tigerstar did not know of her newly found abilities.

Everything was going well until the one evening the dark tabby leader pieced the clues together. They were hunting and Silverpaw decided to turn into a rabbit so she could sneak around. She was just letting her ears lengthen and her paws turned a light brown when the shadow of…something shot over her head. Silverpaw was frightened and ran into the undergrowth. Looking around, she saw Tigerstar's paws pacing right before her nose.

"Where are you, you little scumbag?" Tigerstar sneered then his ears perked up. He rushed toward a patch of quivering fern and all too late, she realized that this patch of fern was the one that she sheltered in.

Springing up, Silverpaw struggled to move but realized her paws weren't carrying her anywhere. Her rabbit nose twitched and her switched body stayed in place in many features. Her instincts were acting up; she was trying to run but the rabbit part of her told her to stay calm and hide in the same place.

_No, you stupid rabbit! _The cat inside of her screamed in protest. _Move! _But she couldn't. The dark tom crashed on top of the bush, grabbing her in his jaws. He was about to swiftly snap her neck and that would be the end of her but he suddenly noticed the peculiar shape of the creature in his jaws.

He almost dropped her, he was so surprised then he stabilized his teeth around the scruff of her neck. "Come along, little Silverpaw," he grunted angrily. "It's time for you to meet your fate." He then whisked the silver apprentice back to the main camp.

Once there, he tossed Silverpaw into a narrow side path leading away from the main camp and climbed up into his Twoleg machine where he made announcements. "All prisoners, come forth now to appear before Your Highness, Tigerstar!" he yowled. All the matted, blood-coated Clan cats managed to limp before their leader and looked up at him with dull eyes.

"This cat, Silverpaw has disrespected your grand leader," Tigerstar began, looking out over the crowd with a vicious gleam in his eye. His tail began to twitch rapidly with hunger as he glanced toward Silverpaw. "Her ignorant mother disobeyed me, as well and refused to move from her stance of protecting her _precious _daughter and son. And we all know what happened to her." He glared at the Clan cats, making them seize up in horror. "Today, I exile them both, Silverpaw and Emberpaw for heresy and for hiding talents from the all-powerful, the all-knowing Tigerstar. Guards, come forward." He nodded toward the side path with a smirk on his face.

Silverpaw could feel icy dread filling the pit of her stomach. She looked around and saw a pack of ragged, battle-hardened wolves, their eyes empty of emotion. Tigerstar jumped down from his perch and strutted over to the little silver she-cat. "I believe my dogs are hungry," he growled maliciously, but quietly so the Clans would not suspect a thing. "Go!" he suddenly barked. "Kill her and her brother, Emberpaw!"

The dark brown tabby tom stepped back and Silverpaw knew-the hunt was on and she would have to run for her life. She immediately raced over to the den she slept in with Emberpaw, hearing the loud hunting bays of the wolves as they began to run after her. She almost forgot her ability but she remembered it in the nick of time. She spun around boldly to face the wolves and turned into one of them herself.

The canines were momentarily confused by the change of shape of their prey but quickly caught to it that this was the same cat they had been chasing a moment ago. They surged forward, snapping at her paws and Silverpaw quickly began to think. _Oh, what's something fast? Oh, abilities, just help me find something fast. _

Suddenly, she felt herself shrink down. She looked around and found herself in the dust of the clearing. Stretching her head around slowly, she managed to catch a glimpse of a shiny salmon-colored shell. "Ah, I'm a snail," she whispered aloud. "Not exactly what I was hoping for." She managed to turn around and see the wolves looking around, distress in their eyes. "Hah," she snorted. "It confused them, alright."

But Silverpaw knew she couldn't keep up her snail disguise for long. She waited a few more seconds and when she thought she was starting to poke at her luck, she jumped up and transformed into a bigger cat, a legendary one that she had heard stories about from the elders. What was it? It was a….lion. Yes, she was a lion, one of the Great Cats of lore, but they were lore no longer.

Silverpaw could almost hear the roaring of the Ancient Lions by her side, daring the wolves to attack her. She turned and darted around, confusing the wolves. She went on, changing into all sorts of animals, distracting, confusing, and attacking all at once. Finally, exhausted, she decided she had had enough and raced toward her brother. He looked in awe from her sudden amazing quick transitions of animal-changing.

She raced out into the forest but suddenly saw that she was in a dilemma. She was half tiger, half wolf. The original wolf that had been her triggering form had stuck with her with a pale blue eye and an elongated pale grey face on one side and a wild amber eye burned from her tiger side with stripes scouring downwards and around her face. However, Silverpaw saw a bit of cat in her in the back paw that possessed the black color it had always had. She guessed that was what made her not a complete wild beast.

But now, she was caught in this. No one would ever trust her in this form. She tried to change but found that her abilities had come grinding to a halt. _I'll have to stay like this, _Silverpaw thought with fear. "Don't worry, Emberpaw," she murmured through the fur on the scruff of his neck, hot tears pricking at her eyes as she ran away from the imprisonment of the Clans. "I'll keep you safe."


End file.
